


Game On.

by Lophorn



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Childhood Friends, F/F, F/M, Fantasy, Friends to Enemies to Lovers, Gamer AU - Freeform, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Modern AU, Slow Burn, Streamer AU, video games - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-29
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:28:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,601
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27782245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lophorn/pseuds/Lophorn
Summary: Etherian is an online mutliplayer rpg-style game in which you choose a class, race, and team before heading out to battle against other teams in various fantasy style maps. Adora and her team have recently worked their way up to the Etherian 'Tournament for Etheria', but a familiar name threatens to risk it all.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra), Adora/Glimmer (She-Ra), Bow/Glimmer (She-Ra), Kyle/Rogelio (She-Ra)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 48





	1. Chapter 1

12 am. A Friday night bleeding into a Saturday morning, the adrenaline and anxiety in the air palpable. Adora stared at the clock, attention fading in and out of focus as she mentally prepared for the match ahead. This was going to be the beginning of a few very important tournament rounds, and one slip up could throw the entire competition. Another quick glance at the clock. A minute had ticked by in her thoughtful absence. Adora gathered herself, sat up straight, and clicked around her screen to finally join the call. 

“‘Ra-! Finally! You made it! Jeez, we thought you were ghosting for a second-” a distinct voice sounded from the other end. Glimm3r; team captain, close friend, and spectacular leader. Glim had been preparing for this all month; Adora could still hear the celebration that rang through the call when they had learned the team made it to the tournament. Glimm3r played as the paladin on their team, the one responsible for strategizing and planning carefully, though she was just as good at improvising in-game. Adora played as a barbarian with the gamertag ‘SheRa’, ready to act out whatever Glim needed for success. Glimm3r was the strategist, SheRa was the tank. Together, they could take down S-tier teams, but not without the help of-

“Okay, got my water, got my cereal bars, good posture- oh! Adora! Hey Adora!” a different, more masculine voice spoke. _Beaux; ranger, sniper, and good-vibes extraordinaire. The team could never pull through without his arrows or enthusiastic leader. Where Adora and Glim tended to be much more strong-headed and quick to action, Beaux was a problem solver with a level head. A bit more emotional, but still just as strong in his own right. 

“Hey Bow, Hey Glim,” Adora responded with a soft smile, the light of the screen dancing across her tired eyes “You guys ready for this?”

“I’d be a bit more ready if a certain someone cared more about preparation rather than snack gathering-”

“Unfair! Physical wellness and care is crucial to keeping my mind sharp and ready for gaming. Besides, you’d rather I waste some time in game rather than beforehand?”

“Actually, yes,”

“That’s a lie and you know it,”

“Totally isn’t. Adora and I can always push forward while you’re AFK, but nothing can make up for lost practice time-”

“I want no part in your lover’s quarrel.” Adora hummed, amusedly adjusting her mic as she listened to the two bicker “Either of you streaming this time around?”

“I figured you would, but I’ll be recording my screen.” Glim responded, the soft clicking of her mouse audible in the background as she got everything prepared

“Bow?”

“Nah, I’ll let you handle it Ra,” 

“Well, me streaming it is.” Adora mumbled, minimizing the game window to begin preparing the stream. Her mouse hovered over the ‘Start Streaming’ button when she saw a discord notification come through. A friend request. Someone named….

Catra.


	2. Pregame

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adora remembers.

_Okay, Okay. What powers do you want? Magic, sword, healing-_

_Can I get magic and a sword?_

_No way! That’d be way too powerful._

_Look at that one right there! He like- hulks out!_

_Yeah but that's not magic, that’s just the barbarian._

_Well it looks magic so I want that, and a sword._

_Fine, fine. Do you want it to look like you?_

_Totally-! Ooh, but make me strong, with lots of muscles_ !

_Can do- aaaaand, final step. What’s the name?_

“Catra.” Adora mumbled, staring at the screen as she let the name sit on her tongue, waiting quietly for realization to hit. She swallowed the name along with the lump in her throat, zoning back out.

_It should be, like, a combination of our names! Like… Kat, and Adora…_

_Adorat?_

_No way! That’s ugly._

_So are you!_

_Hey!_

The soft giggle of childhood laughter echoed in her memories, bouncing off of other bittersweet visions and filling her with a soft sorrow.

_How abooout…. Katra._

_That sounds good! Katra. I like it._

The outline of a toothy grin appeared in her mind.

_Okay cmon doofus. Let’s play our first match._

_Totally gonna kick your butt._

_Nuh-uh. this is literally your first time playing, i'm gonna kick your butt._

She just had to strain to remember a bit more. That messy hair, the smell of cigarette smoke and basement water damage. The family laptop with a computer fan that was louder than the single AC unit. It all felt so familiar, yet so… distant. So lonely, so long ago. A memory hidden in the depths, unlocked only by this ominous name on the screen.

It was misspelled, couldn’t be the same person. Couldn’t be her Kat. Someone different, maybe. Someone with a similar name, or idea for a name, but that was the name of Adora’s first account, which had been deleted years ago. Probably the same time that shitty 2005 laptop finally bit the dust. Adora took a breath and absentmindedly hit ‘Accept’ before returning back to her stream screen, zoning back in to Glimmer and Bow’s conversation. 

“Okay, So Adora’s gonna- Adora? Adoooooora? Can you hear me?” Glimmer asked, her tone faltering into concern near the end of her question.

“Oh- yup! Yup, im here, sorry- zoned out.” 

“You good?” 

“Yeah. Fine.” 

A few concerned mumbles came from Glimmer’s end. As much as she pretended she was upbeat and unafraid, she truly did care deeply about everyone on the team. Especially Adora. A few moments of silence passed before Bow broke the tension.

“Right, well, almost ready? We have 10 minutes before we start.”

“I’m ready, wanna get a quick match in beforehand?” Adora hummed, clicking the ‘Start Stream’ button “Stream should be up soon.

Glimmer, still concerned, gave a small grunt of approval, inviting everyone to a practice lobby. Adora watched the lights flicker along the screen as they practiced, trying to provide a few occasional points of dialogue to stoke the chat. Every once in a while her mind would wander past her character on screen, off into an unknown abyss thinking about that mystery person on discord.

_We’re gonna be friends forever, right Adora?_

_Of course. Why wouldn’t we?_

_I dunno. Just… I get scared you’ll leave me._

_I’d never do that, Kat! Cmere…_

Adora could feel that hug, digging it up from years of suppression and blurry memories. It was warm, and welcoming.

_We’ll be Katra. Forever._

She wanted that hug right now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> soft childhood memories can actually be very bittersweet in the right context :)


	3. Ladder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adora struggles to divert her attention to the game at hand, as it keeps wandering to her empty inbox.

Time moved at an awkward pace as the trio tore through each game with a headstrong vigor. Some games dragged on, relatively easy wins that were kept just out of reach by an occasional slip up from one of the team members. Others were beat in minutes flat, no match for the Knights of Etheria. It still made for good stream content though, as Glimmer had time to make her snarky remarks about Adora’s head being in the clouds and Bow’s heart beating out of his chest. Halfway through, Adora had to alert her mods that ‘simp’ was now to be added to the chat’s restrictions list. 

Even as they continued their win streak, destroying their competitors one by one to rise up the ranks in this tournament, something tugged at Adora. She checked at least three times that, yes, the friend request had been accepted. But no, no messages had come through. 

The more she worried about it, the more she noticed the small discomforts around her. The sweat that kept her back sticking against her faux-leather chair. The way her mouse felt sticky, and how that contrasted the slight oily sheen of her keyboard. It all felt crushing, not aided at all by Glimmer’s goading. 

Normally, rounds of Etherian relaxed her, gave her something to do with her hands as her charm naturally captured the attention and hearts of her viewers. It was always a bonding experience with her friends, too. One of the few activities they could regularly do, even with distance between them; tonight, it just felt like a chore. She had nothing better to do than stare at discord and pray for a message to come in, but-

A ping went off in her right ear as they wrapped up another easy round. It would have been easy to miss under Glim’s shouts of victory and triumph, but the sound set off a visceral reaction in Adora that was impossible to ignore. She paused her stream, setting it to a simple screen that said ‘Be Right Back <3’ before opening discord immediately.

“Ra?” Glimmer said, pausing her victory lap. When there came no response, her tone got much more concerned, filled with a seriousness that was rarely felt in their everyday conversations “Adora? Hey, are you okay?”

The grey screen in front of Adora yielded little answers, just a simple;

[Catra]: hey .

No further introduction, just the most casual greeting possible.

“Yeah, yeah i’m good. Just got a message I had to reply to.” she grumbled into her mic, quickly typing a response

[SheRa]: Hello?

“You’re acting weird, Ra. You sure you don’t need to get some snacks? You know what I always say about blood s-”

“I know, I know, Bow. Blood sugar being low equals a bad time for everyone involved. I’m just a little… on edge about something. I’ll explain it after the stream.” she sighed, preparing to start the stream again. There was an aura of agreement that everyone in the call felt, even if nobody spoke. They all knew it’d be best if they continued with their game, not mentioning it until the stream had officially ended.

Adora tried not to let it get to her has they finished up the few games they had left for the night. Total, they had only battled against 3 teams, but played around 6 games total, as to advance it had to be a 2 out of 3 game win. Now all the remaining teams just had to wait for their placing in the bracket for the games that would happen the next week. The night had passed in such a hazy blur that Adora barely got the adrenaline rush she had from winning games prior, instead it was just a hollow feeling of lost potential. Something was missing, something like…

Another ding.

An explanation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for super super late update ! I started this when I had a lot more free time, and honestly didn't think i'd build on it too much. But, that writing bug came back, so here we are with chapter 3. 
> 
> fun fact i do not proofread Any of these chapters before posting. i just write to my heart's content and regurgitate my wlw bs onto this site so. enjoy, my sapphics <3


	4. Competitor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adora entertains the competitor on the other side of the screen.

[Catra]: that last game was pretty shit

[SheRa]: What a way to start a conversation

[Catra]: hey, i at least greeted you first.  
[Catra]: just gotta make sure my competition stays in her place

Adora scoffed as she read the message

[SheRa]: Ah, so you’re in the tournament?

[Catra]: yep. part of the horde. I’m sure you’ve heard of us, miss princess

In all honesty, Adora had. They were a professional team, with a manager and everything. The community around Etherian was relatively small compared to some of the other popular online multiplayers, so having a team that competed professionally was a huge deal. It was one thing to be a paid streamer, another to have a whole management company behind you. 

But she wouldn’t let the intimidation get to her. The publicity of the Horde would allow her to track their strategies, get into their head. Hell, she had even considered applying for their league at one point in time. Their moves were calculated by experts, which is what made them weak. The erratic play style of the Knights would surely be their downfall, even if the match took hours.

[SheRa]: Yeah. Your name has gotten around.  
[SheRa]: So why is a member of the Infamous Horde messaging a poor little princess like me, huh?

[Catra]: i told you. making sure you know how badly you’ll lose.

[SheRa]: We’re on opposite sides of the bracket. It’s not like we’re gonna be facing you anytime soon.

[Catra]: well maybe i’m just here to lower your morale  
[Catra]: from the looks of your stream, seems like i’ve succeeded.

Shit. She- or, whoever this mystery person was- they’d been watching the stream? They’d noticed her discomfort? Her anxiety? Had she made it that obvious? Or was this the observation of a person that had already known her, the deepest parts of her, for a long time. Part of her knew what the more likely scenario was, but another part was keeping her back from getting that confirmation. Like typing out the question would just sink her deeper into that hollow void in her chest. She barely wanted to know. Ignorance is bliss, and she’d do anything to feel more blissful than this sticky night had let her. 

[SheRa]: Stream sniping? Really? From a professional team, I didn’t expect you to snoop that low.

[Catra]: it’s only stream sniping if we’re playing against each other. otherwise, i’m just.. staking out the competition i guess you could say.   
[Catra]: or maybe i enjoy watching pretty girls play the same game i do. you dont know me, princess.

Adora sucked in a breath. Maybe that was confirmation. Or a weak joke.

[SheRa]: you’re right, i dont know you. So maybe lay off the weird compliments?

[Catra]: right, right, sorry, not used to talking to competitors one on one  
[Catra]: i still haven’t introduced myself

[SheRa]: So you finally acknowledge that ‘hey’ isnt a proper introduction?

[Catra]: oh shut up   
[Catra]: i’m catra. ive been playing for the horde for like, 2 years now, but ive been playing etherian since i was probably 8 or something

Adora had turned 8 the night before she played Etherian for the first time. Kat bought her a copy of the game as a birthday present. The smell of smoky birthday candles and dust from an old computer filled Adora’s mind as she got back into her head.

[SheRa]: is your name really Catra?

[Catra]: no, no. more like. a nickname. But stranger danger yknow, you could be an old creepy man that wants to stalk and doxx me

[SheRa]: You literally just watched my stream.

[Catra]: tomato tomato.

[SheRa]: tomahto.

[Catra]: sure, old man. what abt you? 

[SheRa]: I’m Adora. Been playing with the knights since I was 16, so, 4? 5 years now? Started when I was 8, and began streaming two years ago when we got our first tournament win. 

[Catra]: adora’s a weird name  
[Catra]: your parents are hippies?

[SheRa]: 1. I don’t know my parents, I grew up with my aunt, and now I live alone  
[SheRa]: 2. No weirder than Catra???  
[SheRa]: 3. Thats your only take away?????????

[Catra]: yeah but catra’s like, cooler  
[Catra]: well at least its not an old man name  
[Catra]: i gotta bounce. I’ll annoy you later, adorable.

[SheRa]: sure, furry.

The circle next to Catra’s avatar went from green to grey, signifying she had logged off. Adora sighed as she watched it happen, leaning back in her chair.

Everything lined up so perfectly. The name, the age, everything, but… If it really was her, why didn’t she remember? Why would she forget so many details about her best friend? Or was she playing dumb to avoid suspicion?

A quick google search revealed very little about Catra’s identity. Some Horde members showed their face, mostly the ones in the lower level leagues, but the higher the rankings got, the less likely it was to discover their true identities. The only information she could find about Catra was a few introductory videos from years ago, and an empty Instagram account that simply said “Catra. She/Her. Tier 5 Rogue.” in the bio. She closed out of the tab and reopened discord, un-deafening herself to rejoin the conversation that she had been distanced from for the last 5 minutes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> message heavy chapter ! glimmer, bow, n some other side characters are gonna get some action in the next few chapters, promise, but i wanted to flesh out the sort of love-hate spite relationship between adora n catra in these early chapters. kudos n comments r greatly appreciated <3 !

**Author's Note:**

> First chapter is kinda short but !! If this gets sum good attention, next chapters will b out quickly <3


End file.
